Teacher's Guide INTRODUCTION

Teacher’s Guide ExcErpt Education Development Center SRI International PBS KIDS Lab February 2013 ExcErpt of TeachEr's GuidE INTRODUCTION Welcome—Introduction to the PBS KIDS Study Welcome, educators! Thank you for participating in the PBS KIDS Study—a Ready To Learn Initiative— and for using the Math Curriculum Supplement. The Supplement is a 10-week experience that uses educational media—videos and games from the PBS KIDS and PBS KIDS LAB websites—in combination with other effective learning experiences, such as reading aloud and hands-on activities, to introduce preschoolers to important and age-appropriate math content. Why Educational Media? Research shows that developmentally appropriate educational media, such as short, engaging videos and interactive games, can help teachers prepare preschoolers for school success in a variety of subjects. The Math Curriculum Supplement uses educational media to provide preschool children with powerful alternative ways to explore and practice important math concepts. As part of this study, you will use two kinds of educational media. • Engaging videos will help you introduce new math concepts and vocabulary, as well as provide children with models of how to apply their emerging math skills. • Interactive games will provide opportunities for children to practice math skills in pairs and in small or large groups, and can scaffold and support children’s learning. As an early childhood educator, you play a critical role in supporting preschoolers’ learning throughout the school day. Your role will be just as important when implementing the Math Curriculum Supplement and the educational media components. To be sure you have access to educational media, and to ensure your children benefit from the videos and interactive games, we are providing the following technology for you to use in your classroom. • Interactive Whiteboards (IWBs) allow you to project a computer display on a large interactive touch screen. You’ll be using your IWB to show each week’s video and to demonstrate how to play the week’s interactive games. Displaying videos and games on the Interactive Whiteboard helps the whole class visualize math concepts and practice them together, as children will sometimes take turns using the IWB with you. • Laptop computers let children experience and explore the interactive games with a partner. You will have three new laptop computers in your classroom. Each will include a mouse and two sets of headphones, as well as an audio “splitter” that will allow two children to listen to the same audio when playing a game together. • Wireless Internet routers, where necessary, will ensure the Interactive Whiteboards and laptops have high-speed Internet access. In addition to the new technology, we also will supply you with all of the necessary materials to imple- ment the other classroom activities in the Math Curriculum Supplement, including hands-on objects such as dominoes, Unifix cubes, and crayons, as well as printed materials (number lines and pattern signs) to facilitate large- and small-group activities. 1 INTRODUCTION ExcErpt of tEachEr's GuidE Why Math? Mathematics is a way of understanding our world. Mathematicians think of mathematics as the sci- ence of quantities and patterns. Quantities and patterns are found all around us. Children naturally use quantities and patterns when playing (“My tower is four blocks tall and is made from a red block, then a blue block, then a red block, then a blue block!”). For young children, building a deeper understanding of mathematics can help them better understand the world around them. With exposure to mathematical learning experiences, children can engage in important mathematical conversations and reasoning. They can say how many kids are on the playground, they can figure out if there are enough pieces of fruit for each person at the table, and they can better describe shapes they used to draw a family portrait. Young children frequently have mathematical abilities that are more sophisticated than we realize, and they often have a strong desire to engage in mathematical thinking. It is up to us, as their teachers, to support their mathematical growth and enjoyment. Math Skills Targeted in the PBS KIDS Study Math Curriculum Supplement The Math Curriculum Supplement targets various mathematics skills that are important in early childhood. Below we describe each of these skills and provide examples as needed. Counting By learning to count, children begin to understand the idea of “quantity,” or “how many” things there are in a group. When children first come to preschool they have the ability (and desire!) to count small quantities. In order to become more sophisticated counters, children need opportunities to practice important counting skills, such as the following. • Verbal Counting. Verbal counting involves learning the list of number words (saying “one,” “two,” and so on). Initially, children learn this through chanting and songs, and they may not yet understand how the words relate to quantities. As children become more sophisticated counters, they are able to count to higher numbers and understand that each number word represents a specific quantity. • Object Counting. Object counting involves children learning to associate specific number words with individual objects as they count. Children learn to do this by prac- ticing one-to-one correspondence—that is, counting objects one at a time. For example, when counting two toys, they point to the first and say “one” and then point to the second and say “two.” Initially, when children are learning to count objects, they may skip objects or count objects twice. By scaffolding children’s counting, teachers can help children keep one-to-one correspondence. • Cardinality. Cardinality involves understanding that the last number reached when counting a set of objects answers the question, “How many objects are there altogether?” For example, when shown a group of five blocks and asked, “How many blocks are there altogether?” children learn to answer “five”. Children who have not yet learned about cardinality may count the blocks, yet not know that the last number, five, de- scribes how many there are. 2 ExcErpt of TeachEr's GuidE INTRODUCTION Subitizing Subitizing involves looking at a small set of objects and immediately recognizing the quantity without counting (e.g., recognizing the number of dots on a die that’s shown briefly without having to count them). When children first come to preschool, they are able to subitize small quantities (e.g., one, two) in easy arrangements (e.g., in a line). In order to become more sophisticated subitizers, children need opportunities to practice with larger quantities and varied arrangements. Identifying Numerals During the preschool years, children begin to read numerals (0, 1, 2, 3, and so on). For example, they will verbalize “one” when they see “1.” With practice, children also learn to associate quantities with their corresponding numerals. For instance, children learn to associate the symbol “2” with a set of two objects. In order to become familiar with numerals, children need opportunities to practice reading numerals out loud, as well as matching them to sets of objects. Recognizing, Composing, and Representing Shapes Early in childhood, children are interested and are able to develop a rich understanding of shapes. In order to recognize, compose and represent shapes, children need opportunities to practice the following. • Identifying shapes and their properties. During preschool, children learn to associate shapes with their corresponding names. In order for children to develop a richer understanding of shapes, it is important to help children recognize the geometric properties of shapes (for instance, that triangles have three sides). Properties include the number of sides and the number and kinds of corners (angles). Opportunities to com- pare and classify shapes can help children develop a richer understanding of shapes and their properties. With time and practice, children come to understand that the same shape can vary in size and orientation. • Building or drawing shapes. Children often enter preschool with the ability to copy shapes. However, in order to draw or create shapes by name (for instance, “using these pencils, create a triangle”), children have to understand the properties of shapes. By providing children with opportunities to practice building or drawing shapes, they can come to a more sophisticated understanding of shapes and their properties. Patterning A pattern is an arrangement of repeated parts. Patterning is the search for mathematical regularities and structures. Children’s understanding of patterns develops gradually during the early childhood years. Children often come to preschool able to copy simple patterns and, with practice, can learn to identify, copy, extend, and create simple patterns (e.g., AB patterns). However, as they develop a more sophisticated understanding of patterns, they also are able to identify, copy, extend, and create more complex patterns (e.g., ABB patterns). In order for children to develop a better understanding of patterns, it is important to help them identify core elements of patterns (for example, to identify “red, blue” as the core elements in a “red, blue, red, blue, red, blue ...” pattern). Once children identify core elements of patterns, they are able to develop richer understanding of patterns by copying patterns (using the same objects or different 3 INTRODUCTION ExcErpt of tEachEr's GuidE objects), finding missing core elements in patterns, extending or continuing patterns, or creating their own patterns. This may be done in many spontaneous ways, such as lining up children in a boy-girl-boy- girl pattern for outside time, or copying or extending patterns they see in books, the block towers they build, or the clothes they are wearing. Setting the Stage for Learning with Educational Media In this guide, you will find instructions and scripts to help you integrate educational media and other activities into your classroom.

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